The Man Behind the Mask
by Shaz1
Summary: Set immediately after the movie, a sort of mini prequel to 'A Friend in Need'. Even Captain Jack Sparrow has self doubt sometimes.


The Man Behind the Mask

By Sharron Ibbitson

Rating: G

Disclaimer: None of the characters in this here story belong to me, although I really would like to borrow Captain Jack just for a little while?

This story is set just after the film finishes, and just before the beginning of my other story 'A Friend in need', so it is sort of a prequel but obviously both can be read as stand alones This one is much shorter but your comments are still much appreciated! Please R+R!!!

The Man Behind the Mask

Jack Sparrow sighed deeply as he looked out to sea. It had been too close this time, too close by far. How many times could he escape the reaper at the last minute? Sure he seemed to have the luck of the Gods, but how long before that luck expired, and the legend of captain jack Sparrow was no more? Jack sighed again and rubbed his hands over his tired face, wincing as the movement pulled on the ragged cut on his palm from when he had lifted his own personal curse a few days previously. He laughed at the memory, fancy meeting up with old Bootstrap's son, and what a lad he was, just like his dd. He was kind and moralistic, yet he could fight like the best of pirates, easily holding his own against Barbossa's men. Jack was well aware that the blacksmith really hadn't thought much of him upon their first meeting, in fact he was more than ready to hand him over to the redcoats, yet less than a week later the man had helped the pirate Captain to escape his death, along with his new love Elizabeth. Ah Elizabeth, there was another one. He was sure that the woman would have hated him, yet once they had got past their initial differences Jack was pleased to call the young woman a friend and that wasn't something that Jack gave away lightly. Ever since his blasted first mate had lead the mutiny against him Jack had kept himself to himself, burying himself under layer after layer of masks hiding behind a façade. It never paid to let people know what to expect of you, made you predictable, and if you were predictable you were easily caught and that was something that jack Sparrow had never been. He shook his head to himself and took another drink from the almost empty bottle of rum in his hand. Now he was back on his Pearl, back to the only home he had ever really had. Yet apart of him ached to be back with the people that truly cared at him. Would he ever see them again? He honestly didn't know, it wasn't as if he was a welcome guest at Port Royal, and would they even wish to see him again or would he just be a reminder of something tat the two of them wished to forget?

/////

Elizabeth Swan sighed contently, she and Will had spoken long into the night about their future held together, he had proposed almost immediately and she had accepted happier than she had ever been in her life. She loved Will with all of her heart, whether he was a blacksmith, a pirate or a pier she didn't care, for to her he was simply William Turner, the young man that she had known for eight years. He respected her valued her opinions and loved her in a way that he was willing to trade his own life for hers without so much as a flinch. She smiled remembering their recent adventure.

"I guess we have got a lot to thank jack Sparrow for" she mumbled to herself.

"That's Captain Jack Sparrow" a laughing voice whispered in her ear, and she whirled around to come face to face with Will Turner.

"Yes you are quite right he certainly in Captain Sparrow" she told him seriously. The pirate had more than earnt the use of his correct title. She had regretted a thousand times the harsh words she had spoken to and about him when his intentions had been unclear. Now that she looked back in hindsight it was obvious that Jack had meant neither her nor Will any harm, after all he could have killed them a hundred times over, yet he hadn't he had instead deigned to rescue them and save both of their lives on a number of occasions at no profit to himself. 

"I miss him" Elizabeth told the young man who held her in his arms, and he nodded in agreement.

"Aye so do I" he replied. It was true, he had never thought himself capable of growing so fond of a pirate, yet he was, he honestly respected the man, and loved him like a brother he had never had. 

"Do you think we will ever see him again?" Elizabeth asked quietly.

"Yes, yes I honestly believe that we will, Jack will be in touch if he can" the blacksmith replied, and he hoped with all of his heart that his words were true. 

////

"Captain?" Anamaria prompted her friend, Jack had been sat on the deck with a bottle of rum, just staring out to sea ever since she had finally persuaded him to relinquish his hold on the ship's wheel, as if afraid that if he let go somebody would once more take off with his beloved ship. It took a moment but he eventually turned his gaze in her direction, and raised an eyebrow. "Jack are you okay? You have been out here for hours, I was just a little bit concerned" she asked him in an uncharacteristic display of concern. He looked at her thoughtfully for a moment before responding,

"Aye Ana lass, I'm just fine" he told her, and hearing the melancholy note to his voice she refused to accept his answer and just sat down next to him.

"You miss them don't you?" she asked him when he made no further move to talk. It took a moment before he made any reaction to her words, then he carefully took another swallow from the bottle in his hands.

"Have you ever felt lonely? Like all you have is what is in front of you and nothing more? Do you ever wonder if anyone would cry for you if you were to die?" he asked her his face set in an unfamiliarly serious expression. Anamaria looked at him in surprise, she had never heard Jack speak so openly before, he kept things to himself all of the time, as a side effect of his previous betrayal. 

"Of course everybody does. I just remember that I have lived my life the way that I have chosen, and followed my own path, same as you Jack. It's a load of rubbish you worrying that no one would cry for you" she told him, squeezing his arm to emphasise her point, she wasn't used to seeing her Captain so vulnerable and it scared her a little.

"Yeah? Just who would cry for me then?" he asked her harshly. She bit her lip, not liking the direction of their conversation.

"Well Will and Elizabeth for a start" she told him, and he snorted in response. "Its true jack, they worship the ground that you walk on any fool could see that. The pair of fools believe in your legend. Young Will would walk to the ends of the Earth and back again for you, and Elizabeth would save you from yourself if it was the last thing she could do" the dark woman told her Captain meaning every word. 

"No, I'm gone from their lives now. Its for the best if they never hear another word from Captain Jack Sparrow, I ain't got nothing to offer them but trouble" he replied, his voice laced with emotion that he tried rather unsuccessfully to hide. 

"You just dare Jack Sparrow!" Ana replied angrily. "You just dare, you hide yourself under that getup and don't let anybody see you for what you truly are, for some unknown reason you let the whelp and his little lady see you. You Jack Sparrow, the man not the Captain of the Black Pearl. You let them under whatever barrier you have built up, and they chose to stay there, nobody forced them. They stood by your side, and they both grew to love you, they choose to stay with you, and they chose to be your friends. They love you Jack same as the crew do. They respect you for what you are, not for what you chose to show the World, but what is hidden underneath. If you push them away now you will regret it" she told him, her voice rising with each word. He turned to her incredulously, shocked by her words. He was very good at hiding, it was what he had spent a lifetime doing, yet in front of her piercing gaze he felt naked and unprotected, she knew him too well, and he wasn't sure whether to be comforted or worried about that fact.

"Well then its just one more to add to the list then ain't it he told her, and scrambled to his feet heading back to his cabin, his gait steady as his feet followed the gentle sway of his ship. Anamaria stared after the man shocked at how easily the mask had slipped back into place. She shook her head, that man had spent far too much of his life alone, she'd be damned if she was going to let his waste his chance of two friendships that might actually mean something. 

/////

A week later Elizabeth stood outside of her home and watched the gentle waves of the ocean before her. Ever since he had been returned from her adventure she had been filled with a certain kinship for the water that she hadn't felt before. However on this day it wasn't the waves that held her interest, she was in fact looking out for a certain letter to be delivered. As soon as she and Will had retired for their first evening together, they had written a letter between them to their friend Jack, and she was desperately awaiting a response. She had known where the ship was heading, so she and Will had arranged for the letter to be delivered to a Tavern that the crew regularly visited out in Tortuga, yet Jack hadn't responded to her correspondence. She sighed deeply as strong arms wrapped themselves around her waist.

"Still nothing?" Will asked her, knowing instinctively what his fiancée was waiting for. 

"No nothing. Do you think something has happened?" she asked worriedly.

"No, we would have heard. Maybe they haven't arrived at Tortuga yet, or maybe Jack can't even read and write to be able to reply" Will replied, and even he knew that his response would hold no weight.

"William Turner! Don't you dare lie to me, you and I both know that Jack Sparrow is more than capable of reading an entire encyclopaedia and writing his own version, so we both know he could mange a simple letter." She responded, her tone harsh. Will sighed to himself. 

"Yes I know you're right, still I'm sure we will hear something within the next few days" he consoled her, yet in his mind his thoughts were racing What if something had happened to Jack? Maybe he simply didn't wish to converse with them any more? Will shook his head, no he was sure the pirate ship had simply been delayed, yes that was it was definite. 

/////

"Are you really going to just sit here and stare at it?" Gibbs asked his Captain roughly, and Jack made no move to open the letter that was currently sat in front of him on his desk. When his friend made no response, Gibbs stepped forward and picked up the envelope the neat script clearly spelling out the Captain's name. "Jack you know who it is from don't you?" he asked.

"Yes of course I bloody well know who it is from" Jack snapped in response, and Gibbs involuntarily took a step back, unused to baring the brunt of the Captain's anger. "I open it when I am good and ready savvy?" he continued, and Gibbs raised his hands in a sign of surrender, replaced the letter and silently left the cabin. As soon as the older man had gone Jack once more picked up the letter.

"Bloody hell, why did you have to write to me!" he asked the inanimate object in frustration and promptly dropped the letter once more as if it burnt his fingers to touch it. 

_Because they care for you stupid! _ The voice responded in his own mind.

"Well they shouldn't bloody care for me, it'll only get em hurt" jack responded out loud.

_Not everyone you touch gets hurt _The voice persisted, and Jack raised his hand up to his now throbbing temples.

"Yes they do, no one that calls themselves a friend of Captain Jack Sparrow are safe. I won't have them hurt cos of me" Jack replied quieter now. 

_Isn't that their decision, they know what they are doing, all they want is friendship, just reading the letter doesn't mean you have to contact them in return.  _Jack paused for a moment, he hadn't thought of it like that, he could just read the letter and not reply. He downed the remainder of the bottle of rum he held in his hand, then with new resolve picked up the letter and opened the envelope. It took him a few moments for his drunken gaze to focus on the words on the page, but as he read he felt a smile involuntarily cross his face.

_Dearest Jack,_

_Sine we didn't get the chance to wish you well as you had to leave so promptly we felt that we should write, we sincerely hope that this letter finds you well and in good health. Given the circumstances of our parting we never really got the opportunity to thank you properly. When we first met we both judged you harshly we allowed pre conceived beliefs to cloud our opinions and neither of us truly gave you a real chance to show us the sort of man you truly are, so that we really apologise it was wrong of us and we couldn't have been more wrong. You are a good man Captain Sparrow, a loyal man that truly does care. We don't know why you feel you need to keep your emotions hidden, and why you don't trust others enough to let them get close to you, but we do think that we understand. It must truly have been terrible for you Jack when you were betrayed so badly by that evil man, to think of somebody as a friend and have him walk off with everything that you hold dear, and leave you stranded on a desert island with no real means of escape, that must have been horrible. _

_We must say that we already miss you, you brought a little bit of adventure to our otherwise bland lives, and more importantly you gave us each other, you gave us the bravery to admit our feelings for each other, despite what people thought, you also gave us the friendship of a very special man. You. Without your intervention we would probably never have had the courage to confess how we feel, and would have ended up living lives full of regret, you prevented that just by giving us a push in the right direction. That was very noble of you Jack. _

_Well there isn't really much to say, however please remember that you are always welcome in our home, Commodore or no commodore, you are our dear friend Jack, and a friend always has a place by our side in any times of need. Please stay in touch even it is only a brief word to let us know that you still live and breathe, we miss you and would hope that you also took something away from our little adventure on the high seas. Please don't be a stranger, true friendship is not always easy to come by, it would be a shame to waste something so precious._

_All of our love and respect_

_Will and Elizabeth_

_Xx_

"Why did she have to bloody say that?" Jack cursed out loud. He groaned to himself, their words were making it very hard to ignore them when they had written him such a meaningful letter, he sighed as he reached once more for his bottle of rum intent on drinking himself to oblivion once more. "Damn the whelp and his wench" he cursed once more before finishing his second bottle of the evening. 

////

"Why aren't you out waiting to see if there is any mail?" Will asked his fiancée in surprise, everyday she had been stood outside without fail waiting for word of their friend to arrive.

"There's no point is there? I mean it's obvious that he isn't going to respond to us. I thought we meant something to him, I guess I was wrong" she told the blacksmith sadly. Will grinned at her.

"You won't be wanting this then?" he asked teasingly waving a small white envelope under her nose. She gasped in surprise and an openly delighted smile graced her fair face.

"Is it from Jack?" she asked hopefully, and he nodded, still not handing her the letter. "How did you get it?" she asked him in puzzlement.

"He addressed it to the forge, I guess so that he knew it would be safe from prying eyes" Will replied. 

"Have you read it then?" she asked, almost disappointed.

"No, I thought that we would read it together" Will told him, and she pulled him into an affectionate embrace, Will knew her so well, it was so clear why she loved him so much. 

"Come on then let's read it" she told him, and they walked towards the table and chairs on the veranda, the two of them sat down and laid the sheet of paper between them on the table, and eagerly read the letter written in flamboyant text that perfectly fit it's author. 

_Dear Whelp and Miss Swan,_

_I have never really been one for letter writing, but I suppose in your case I can make an exception to me rule, after all I would say they are more guidelines than actual rules. It was truly a pleasure to meet the two of you. Whelp you are so like old Bootstrap that it is uncanny, he would be so proud of you now. _

_No thanks are necessary for the few words of advice I offered, it would have been a tragedy for you to waste the feelings you so obviously have for each other, and I guess that Captain Jack is just a romantic at heart._

_Anyways the __Pearl__ and the crew are just fine, going about business as usual, and the future looks bright for us scourges of the community. We are setting sail in a few short hours, so I don't know when I will next be free to write to you, but if you ever need me or the Pearl just write same as you did, a letter in Tortuga will always reach me. I did take something from our adventure, something that I rarely allow myself to have. I gained two good friends, and to a pirate that is rare indeed. I also gained my freedom back, remember Miss Swan, far more than a hull and a mast and a set of sails make sure that you remember that you rum burner. _

_I must toddle off now; Captain Jack has some plunder to chase and a horizon to be seen. You take care of each other. I will see you again, you can trust my word on that after all I have never given you reason not to trust me. _

_I don't want you worrying about me, I am fine now, I have got me crew and me Pearl, so I will be just fine and dandy. If ever you worry, just remember one thing: I am Captain Jack Sparrow._

_Yours _

_Jack_

Elizabeth laughed out loud at some points of their friend's letter, bless him he truly had taken their friendship to his heart. Will smiled, missing his friend more than ever.

"See I told you he'd write" he told the woman beside him as he hugged her close.

"Yes, yes you did Will, and I am mighty glad that you were right" she responded, and the two carefully folded up the letter an placed t in one of the drawers away fro other people's eyes, then hand in hand and with much lighter hearts they went for a stroll along the docks. 

////

"Admit it you feel better for writing to them don't ya?" Anamaria prompted her Captain as he seemed in a much better mood than he had done for the last coupe of weeks since they had departed from Port Royal. He tutted loudly.

"No, I just didn't want em thinking I'd gone down to Davy Jones locker is all" he told her, with a hint of a smile in his chocolate brown eyes. "Now ain't you got some work to be getting on with?" he said as he gently pushed her towards the rigging, she rolled her eyes at him, but started her climb upwards. As soon as she was out of his sight she smiled to herself, yes Captain Jack Sparrow was a truly good man. A pirate maybe, but still a good man. She laughed lightly, he was an even better man on the rare occasion that he allowed his mask to slip, even for a second, and allow the lucky few a brief glimpse of what he had hidden behind. She smiled as she caught his voice carrying up from the helm.

"Yo ho ho and really bad eggs" he sung out, and she groaned, she was going to throttle Elizabeth Swan for teaching him that blasted song.

Fini

Yep that's it the end. I hope that this wasn't just meaningless dribble, and that someone actually read it and enjoyed it! Lease read and review and let me know your thought sof if this was worthwhile or not!


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